Navajo Bracelet--Lee Charley

I bought these natural Royston stones at a gem and mineral shop here in Albuquerque several months ago. Lee Charley, who began his silversmithing career in the early 80s, created this handsome bracelet for me. Artistry apparently runs in the family. Lee learned from his mother, Nellie Charley. His brother, Ernest Rangel, is also a well-known silversmith. Lee's wife, Karen, is the sister of Calvin Martinez. Lee and Karen's son, Matthew, has become a recognized silversmith in his own right. So much talent. So many gifts.

Albuquerque Front Garden May 2016

SUPER SALE NOB HILL ALBUQUERQUE--Friday-Saturday, April 22-23, 2016, 8 'til 1

Watercolor, Waller County, Texas

I bought this wonderful watercolor about 15 years ago. I didn't own it for long. Now, I have bought it back from the person who has loved it in her collection for these years.

Five-Gallon Double-Handled Stoneware Jug

I found this happy piece in Ft. Worth Texas recently. According to the shop owner, the piece came from an individual in the city. That's all she would reveal when I asked if she knew anything about it's origin.

I sent these images to a Texas collector of stoneware, hoping that he could tell me definitively what I had lucked on to. That didn't really happen, although his email back to me began, "Cracks me up... IT'S EVERYTHING!". There seems to be some McDade, Meyer, Limestone County (all Texas), and even Missouri/Midwest influence in the form, glaze, handles. That would make sense because all early Texas potters began somewhere else and brought the skills and influences of another region of the country to Texas.
How about that cobalt blue 5? What does it say?

Even though I've been the proud steward of some wonderful pieces of Texas stoneware—passed on to other collectors several years ago—I am still a novice. Without a signature, it's still conjecture, and up to the so-called experts to identify.

Regardless of where this beauty began, I will gladly be its steward for a while, here in my adopted home, New Mexico.

A similar piece identified as McDade, in Texas Pottery Field Guide, Volume 1,  by Dale Ross, published in 2008.

Casey the Blue Heeler—Rest in Peace

November 15, 1999 — January 12, 2016

 Still a frisky pup at age 10,
with the heart of a champion

Sunday morning light